Railway-wagon.



No. 738.360. PATENTED SEPT. 8, 1903- M VON SALM HOOGSTRAETBN. RAILWAY WAGON.

APPLICATION FILED MA& 14, 1903. NO MODEL.

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UNITED STATES Patented September 8, 19031 PATE T OFFICE.

RAI LWAY-WAGON.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 738,360, dated September 8, 190 3. Application filed May 14, i903. $erialNo-15'h042. (N0 model.)

To all whont it may concern:

' Be it known that I, MANFRED GRAB VON SALM HOOGSTRAETEN, a citizen of the German Empire, residing at Dusseldorf, in the Kingdom of Prussia,Germany, have invented a new and Improved Railway-Gar, of which the following is a specification.-

The essence of my invention consists in removing by automatic means in case of accident the inner compartment of the wagons, together with the passengers seated therein. It may happen that the passengers sustain some slight injury during the operation; but compared with the loss of life occasioned by a collision of trains composed of wagons of the present build the injurywould be slight indeed.

The invention in question, then, consists of a contrivance for separating the inner compartment with its occupants from the truck in case of collision, whether it be from the front, rear, or flank, as also in case of derailing, and thus averting the danger of the passengers being crushed and killed. The wagons, which are quite lightly built and rest on an outer frame which is loosely fixed on the trucks, can in the moment of danger be freed from the latter by means of some suitable contrivance-as, for example, by springs, air, steam, or gas pressure, by the explosion of some suitable materials, 850. The fastenings are released by the shock of the collision. The inner compartments are built, preferably, of some very light material-as, for example, of a skeleton frame of iron with aluminium,leather,or rubber mantling and the outer frame,with outer disengaging-gear,may be furnished with bent springs reaching from the ceiling of the car to the truck and acting on a movable cross-piece.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure l is a side elevation of a railway-car embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan of the releasing mechanism; Fig. 3, a cross-section of the car, showing the springs compressed; and Fig. 4, a cross-section showing the springs released.

A frame or box I), which may form the outer walls of the carriage, is connected to the truck or base a. The compartment or carbody 0 proper is inserted removably into this Steel springs d of the strongouter frame.

est order are affixed to the truck a, which when they are compressed lie under the bot tom of the inner compartment 0 and are here held in place by a rail, slide, or catch e, the projecting arms f of which engage the ends of the springs. (See Figs. 2 and 3.) The rail 6 is movably guided along the truck. The bent levers c', which are pivoted at h, rest against pins or fingers g, which are fixed torail e. At their ends these bent levers are connected with the rods 70, which are connected with the cross-pieces Z, which are acted upon by the spiral springs m. All of the bent levers i are also connected with the rods 12, which are affixed to the footboards 0 or to a special frame or board. These footboards 0 are movable and are also acted upon by springs to and forced outward. The springs are of such strength as to require great impact to displace the cross-pieces l or the footboards 0. In practice, however, it must be borne in mind that in case of derailment or capsizing the truck by bearing against the slide or foot board will release the springs.

In case of a collision between two trains the bufiers of the wagons will be forced back or dashed to pieces, so that the cross-pieces Z of two adjoining cars which act on rails or the bent springs y, attached to frames 1), meet. Thus the cross-piecesl are forced inward against springs m to move slide 6 by rods 70 and angle-levers 11. The armsf of the slide will consequently be withdrawn, freeing the springs,which eject the light compartments out of reach of the crashing and grinding trucks. Should a train be dashed into from the side, the footboards or similar contrivances are displaced, the rods'n and the bent leversi are set in action, and the levers i, resting on or against the pins 9 of the rail (2, will move the latter so that the springs d are released and eject the compartment 0 out of its frame I). At the same time the springs of the wagons of the other train are by the I inner compartment is to be thrown experience must show. Until some automatic contrivance is invented the open frame for door and Window of the inner compartment must be covered with a net by the guard. It may further be remarked that it is advisable to up holster the interior or to hang it with nets and to have a strap or belt behind each seat for fastening around the body. The public would soon become accustomed to the idea.

hat I claim is l. A railway-car provided with a base, a removable body, means for projecting the body from the base, and a slide for releasing said means, substantially as specified.

2. A railway-car provided with a base, a removable body, intervening springs, a slide engaging said springs, and a cross-piece for actuating the slide, substantially as specilied.

Signed by me at Dusseldorf, Germany, this 1st day ofMay, 1903.

' MANFRED GRAF VON SALM HOOGSTRAETEN.

Witnesses:

PETER LIEBER, WILLIAM EssENwEIN. 

